Ellen, contact LLLI. My husband is blind and, in 1987 when we were expecting
Susan, he obtained tapes through them. They have The Womanly Art of
Breastfeeding on tape. My husband used to get tapes of New Beginnings (the
LLLI magazine for bf parents). We met an interesting blind couple (from
Idaho, I believe) who were (at that time) responsible for getting the
materials into audio form. They shared their enthusiasm for bf and LLLI with
us.

They told us a wonderful story of having two guide dogs present at the
hospital when their children were born -- talk about a family centered
birth!

Your client might also try the Library of Congress lending library in her
area (National Library Service for the Blind and Handicapped) -- likely she
already gets books on tape from them.

There are organizations for blind parents. Contact your state agency for the
blind, National Organization of the Blind, or American Federation of the
Blind. They can provide resources. We used to belong to an organization of
parents of blind children, but they also had materials for blind parents.

Nothing will take the place of kinesthetic learning for this lady. She would
benefit from practice with dolls, and one-on-one explanation of positioning,
latch-on. She will need to feel the latch, so observation and helpful
support in the first couple of days will be very important.

BTW: One of our friends, who is blind, had her baby at a local hospital
where baby-friendly has been a goal. Her highest compliment of the nursing
staff: "They never once assumed I needed more help than sighted moms. They
asked me to tell them if I needed anything -- then they left me to it." This
is often a deep concern for blind or deaf parents. My husband says when he
was young it was common for blind or deaf parents to have their children
removed to foster care, regardless of their parenting abilities.

I hope the materials are still "out there." If not, perhaps the local LLLI
group would read the materials onto a tape for her. Having information from
New Beginnings -- incuding the advertisements -- is a real help. There are
also places that will set printed material into jiffy Braille for a fee.

If you hit dead ends email me and I will put my husband on the trail. He
works for the National Braille Press and, even though he is past needing
bf info (he knows it all :-D ) I'll bet he could track down something. I'll
give a plug for the National Braille Press: they have a Children's book
club. Publishers donate children's books and the press inserts clear
brailled pages. This way the child can look at the book while the parent
reads.

Good luck.
Sorry this was so long.

Margery Wilson, IBCLC
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